‘Despite the posh venue, it seems that the effort was so haphazardly put together that the men sitting beside Mayor Domagoso had no clue that he was going to go off the reservation when he called for VP Robredo to drop out of the race.’
HAPPY Easter, my dear millennials and fillennials!
What would’ve been a quiet Easter day was set abuzz with the joint press conference called by presidential candidates Manila Mayor Isko Moreno Domagoso, Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson, and former Arroyo-era secretary Norberto Gonzales. Until the nth hour, there was no clear reason given why the press conference was being called — I suppose they just wanted to pique people’s interest.
And so it went, that these five men (Domagoso and Lacson were joined by their running mates Dr. Willie Ong and Senate President Tito Sotto, respectively) went on to hold the most peculiar joint press conference — they had gone through all the trouble to boldly let the world know that none of them will be withdrawing their candidacies. From what I gather, Mayor Domagoso was particularly incensed at messages being passed around in group chats and social media conversations that he should withdraw from the race. Funny that he sounded like he was losing sleep over these calls, knowing that he has been an elected official (as he consistently likes reminding people) for more than a decade and would have developed thicker skin against unfriendly comments.
The men took pains to emphasize that the press con was not “anti-Leni” (referring to VP Leni Robredo) but this fell flat as VP Robredo was obviously not invited to the party, in a manner of speaking. It was honestly reminiscent of men gathered around over several drinks to gripe about the latest perceived slight against them. Apparently, the men still carry baggage from the failed unification talks that were said to have happened last August up to the filing of certificates of candidacy. While I do not presume to know more than these players, it is quite obvious that their feathers were ruffled at some point of these talks, and it has become very, very personal.
Not to mention that the call for VP Robredo to withdraw from the race makes zero sense.
She is, after all, in second place behind Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the son of the deposed dictator. By what stretch of logic does it make sense to ask the person closest to the front runner to withdraw and give way to the back of the pack?
It seems that these men have forgotten that there can only be one winner in the presidential race: despite sitting next to each other during that press con, they are all still, in reality, contenders for the post. And people only get to pick one, so what gives? Do they want votes to be evenly distributed among them so they can…lose?
Another interesting question to me is this: whose idea was the entire thing? Did no one on these campaign teams object to the entire exercise by pointing out that it would have resulted in a net negative for their principals? Again, another mystery to wonder about.
Credit to the advisers of Sen. Manny Pacquiao, who dodged a bullet, citing a scheduling conflict to explain his absence.
Despite the posh venue, it seems that the effort was so haphazardly put together that the men sitting beside Mayor Domagoso had no clue that he was going to go off the reservation when he called for VP Robredo to drop out of the race. Judging by Sen. Lacson’s subsequent interviews, it seems he was caught unaware by the statement, and clarified that Mayor Domagoso was speaking only for himself. That’s what group chats are for, gentlemen. You can figure it out amongst yourselves without everyone and their cousin watching.
All in all, fair to say that the entire event could have been, as pointed out by some social media users: “an email.”
